# PBS KIDS ScratchJr — Kids Coding Games & Activities

> Kids coding app for creating interactive stories and games with PBS KIDS characters. (iPhone/iPad app by PBS KIDS.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pbs-kids-scratchjr/id1047840202 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [PBS KIDS](https://appshunter.io/developer/324323339)
- Category: Education, Games, Family
- Price: Free
- Rating: 4.00/5 from 289 App Store ratings · 92 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 11.0 · 138 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2015-12-02
- Data updated: 2026-08-23
- Monetization: free
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pbs-kids-scratchjr/id1047840202/reviews.md

## What is PBS KIDS ScratchJr?

With PBS KIDS ScratchJr, kids can create their own interactive stories and games through programming activities and lessons.

Learn the basics of coding through fun games and activities featuring characters from Wild Kratts, Lyla in the Loops, Odd Squad, Work it Out Wombats, and more! The storytelling possibilities are endless with this creative coding app for children ages 5-8.

Children can express their creativity and make characters move, jump, dance and sing by snapping together colorful programming blocks. This app helps kids learn the foundation of programming and coding concepts in a way that’s fun and easy to learn.

As kids play, they’ll learn to solve problems, design projects and express themselves creatively.

With PBS KIDS ScratchJr, young kids can play and practice early school concepts at home. Download this fun educational app to get started!


PBS KIDS ScratchJr Features:

Programming Games
- Colorful Programming Blocks teach basic coding concepts
- Play and learn by snapping together the color-coded motion, sound, look, trigger and control blocks
- Use programming concepts to create sequences that cause characters to animate
- Program characters to interact in fun and exciting ways
- Learn problem solving techniques 

PBS KIDS Characters and Backgrounds
- 150+ PBS KIDS characters to mix and match
- Children can create projects based on their favorite shows, including:
- Wild Kratts
- Lyla in the Loop
- Work It Out, Wombats
- Molly of Denali
- Odd Squad
- Arthur
- Nature Cat
- Peg +Cat
- Ready Jet Go
- And more!

Paint Editing
- Create characters and backgrounds
- Painting made simple on illustration grids
- Paint characters from PBS KIDS shows
- Express creativity by painting 

Voice Recording
- Use the recording tool to add sounds and your voice to projects
- Voice characters from PBS KIDS shows

Story Starters
- Looking for inspiration? Eight Story Starters in the app are a great place to start
- Each Story Starter features a different set of characters from PBS KIDS shows
- Kids can create the stories they want with Story Starters
- Encourage children to edit and complete the story however they’d like

Introduce children to the basics of coding while having fun with PBS KIDS characters. Start learning, programming, painting, drawing and creating interactive stories. 

Download PBS KIDS ScratchJr today!

PBS KIDS ScratchJr is only available for iPad.
----------------------

For more PBS KIDS apps, visit http://www.pbskids.org/apps

For more on ScratchJr, visit http://www.scratchjr.org


Privacy
Across all media platforms, PBS KIDS is committed to creating a safe and secure environment for children and families and being transparent about what information is collected from users. To learn more about PBS KIDS' privacy policy, visit pbskids.org/privacy

PBS KIDS ScratchJr is a collaboration between PBS, Scratch Foundation and the DevTech Research Group at Boston College. The PBS KIDS logo & PBS KIDS® PBS. Used with permission. ScratchJr logo is used with permission. PBS is not affiliated with Scratch Foundation and Boston College.

## Key features

- Create interactive stories and games
- Learn basic coding concepts
- Use colorful programming blocks
- Incorporate PBS KIDS characters
- Paint and edit characters/backgrounds
- Record voice for projects
- Utilize story starters for inspiration

## What do users think of PBS KIDS ScratchJr?

Overall sentiment: mixed

**Pros**

- 👨‍👧‍👦 Great for teaching kids to code
- 🎨 Fun creative storytelling and animation features
- 🎭 PBS Kids characters and themed content
- 💰 Free app with no paywall
- 📚 Educational value for young learners
- 🌍 Multilingual support (English/Spanish)
- 🎬 Ability to create games and videos
- ✨ Engaging and entertaining for children

**Cons**

- 🐛 Frequent bugs and glitches
- ❌ Limited coding blocks compared to original ScratchJr
- 🎭 Character roster hasn't been updated in years
- ⚠️ Drawing/text tools produce poor quality output
- 🔊 Sound and voice recording features broken or missing
- 📱 Performance issues and slowness
- 🎬 Tutorial/demo videos don't play
- 🖼️ Limited backgrounds and customization options
- ⚙️ Confusing interface for beginners
- 🔄 Undo/home button causes unexpected behavior

**Commonly reported bugs**

- Home button causes character to revert to previous position
- Projects fail to load when creating or opening
- Voice recording feature not working or missing
- How-to tutorial videos don't play
- Drawing tool corrupts custom characters
- Timer block doesn't function correctly
- Drag-and-drop programming blocks unresponsive
- App crashes when using certain blocks
- Dot character won't disappear from new slides
- Performance slowdown during projects
- Paint editor labels incorrectly aligned with icons
- Microphone feature doesn't show up or work
- Text rendering issues with fonts and handwriting

**Most requested features**

- Add more PBS Kids shows (Let's Go Luna, Dinosaur Train, Elinor Wonders Why, Hero Elementary, Wordgirl, Rosie's Rules, Alma's Way)
- Unlimited pages/slides instead of 4-slide limit
- More coding blocks from original Scratch (text-to-speech, etc.)
- Custom character creation on blank canvas
- Level maker and world maker features
- 2D and 3D options
- Editable PBS backgrounds
- Search bar for projects
- More sound effects (crashing, slipping, sliding)
- Page titles/naming system
- More characters for existing shows
- Offline functionality
- Bring back Kart Kingdom game

## Recent user reviews (10 of 92)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pbs-kids-scratchjr/id1047840202/reviews.md

### 1/5 — It won’t even load I tried but I couldn’t

*2026-08-08, version 2.3.0*

It wasn’t loading I tried and tried and tried and tried and tried but I still can’t get it to load

### 5/5 — This game is great

*2026-07-14, version 2.3.0*

5 stars

### 4/5 — It’s good, but it has some bugs

*2026-06-23, version 2.3.0*

Every time I do something in the app or or try to do some stuff it keeps doing OK just fix every single bug that exist because every time you know when you do the zigzag, why does it stick to the rest but I’m trying to delete something it sticks because I was trying to make a furry character and it was stuck to the eyebrows, and I had to use the same design to make another one that didn’t have any eyebrows now what am I gonna say that my character eyebrow are stuck? To it or something I just deleted it and I’m gonna give you guys four star. I was going to give you guys five stars except for 100 bugs but still it’s good just for a few things. Also please add more. Characters because you only put the new ones now even though the Daniel Tiger curious George, you know you have Layla in the loop because why didn’t you put curious George or Daniel Tiger or super why because you only put a few characters

### 5/5 — love that game

*2026-04-11, version 2.3.0*

I’m starting PBS Kids ScratchJr, but I’m a pull up for Del, Dot, and Dee.

### 4/5 — THE APP BUG BUT OVERALL VERY GOOD GAME LOVE IT

*2026-03-26, version 2.3.0*

I LIKE THE GAME IT IS SO FUN MY PROBLEM WITH IT IS WHEN I MOVE ONE OF MY CHARACTERS AND I PUSH HOME IT GO BACKTO WERE IT WAS BEFORE MAYBE I AM WRONG AND THAT IS HOW THE APP IS Supposed TO BE BUT IT NEVER HAPPENED TO ME BEFORE ONE TIME IT HAPPENED SO I YOU CAN FIX THAT BUT OTHER THAN THAT I LOVE IT IT REALLY HELP PEOPLE TO LEARN HOW TO CODE AND I REALLY LIKE IT WHICH IS WHY I GIVE IT 3 STARS OUT OF 5 BUT I ADD 1 MORE SO 4 OUT OF 5 AND I USE IT A REALLY LOVE IT THANK YOU

### 4/5 — Bring splash and bubbles 😭😭😭

*2026-02-26, version 2.3.0*

PBS kids needs to add splash and bubbles

### 2/5 — MOVIE making not GAME making

*2026-01-25, version 2.3.0*

Great game, BUT all you do is code so that you tap and the character moves itself OR automatically it will start moving by itself. Also, I want you to be able to have as many pages as you want. And add the rest of the PBS characters and add ways to create your own on a blank canvas and add a level maker and a world maker( like a series of levels with decorated backgrounds and open spaces) add 2d and 3d choices to. Please add all these features

### 5/5 — Shut up GMHRozal

*2025-11-22, version 2.3.0*

Shut up

### 5/5 — Hazz kk

*2025-10-16, version 2.3.0*

Love kart kingdom sprites

### 3/5 — Meh

*2025-09-06, version 2.3.0*

3/5

## Frequently asked questions about PBS KIDS ScratchJr

### What does PBS KIDS ScratchJr do?

PBS KIDS ScratchJr is an app designed for children ages 5-8 to create their own interactive stories and games. It teaches foundational coding concepts through engaging programming activities and lessons, allowing kids to make characters move, sing, and interact.

### What are the key features of PBS KIDS ScratchJr?

Key features include the ability to create interactive stories and games using colorful programming blocks, incorporating over 150 PBS KIDS characters, painting and editing tools for characters and backgrounds, voice recording capabilities, and story starters for inspiration.

### Is PBS KIDS ScratchJr free to use?

Yes, PBS KIDS ScratchJr is a free educational app. It does not have any in-app purchases or advertisements, making it a safe and accessible platform for children to explore coding and creativity.

### What devices is PBS KIDS ScratchJr compatible with?

PBS KIDS ScratchJr is currently only available for iPad. Users will need an iPad device to download and use the application for their children.

### How does this app help children learn?

The app helps children learn by engaging them in problem-solving, project design, and creative expression through programming. By snapping together colorful blocks, kids learn sequencing, logic, and how to bring their ideas to life, fostering early school concepts in a fun way.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 2.3.0 — 2025-03-25

Now with Lyla in the Loop characters!

### 2.2.0 — 2023-09-20

Play with new characters and backgrounds from the PBS KIDS show, Work It Out, Wombats!

### 2.1.0 — 2022-11-18

Now including characters from Molly of Denali!

### 2.0.0 — 2021-09-23

Updated for newer iPad devices and OS.

### 1.2.6 — 2018-11-20

Minor design updates

## Apps similar to PBS KIDS ScratchJr

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## More apps by PBS KIDS

- [Super Why! Power to Read](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/super-why-power-to-read/id362179828)
- [PBS KIDS Video](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pbs-kids-video/id435138734)
- [FETCH! LUNCH RUSH](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/fetch-lunch-rush/id469089331)
- [Super Why! ABC Adventures](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/super-why-abc-adventures/id546688555)
- [Daniel Tiger’s Play at Home](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/daniel-tigers-play-at-home/id553211336)
- [Cyberchase 3D Builder](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cyberchase-3d-builder/id567766140)

All apps by PBS KIDS: https://appshunter.io/developer/324323339

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-23.*